The Luneburg Variation (1998 publication) - Softcover
The the body of an impeccable businessman from Vienna is discovered in an elaborate garden where topiary shrubs delineate a hidden chessboard behind the hedges. Apparently the death is a suicide without plausible motivation, but as the plot of this passionately colored, coolly controlled thriller unfolds, readers see that its apparently random moves are "variations" on an opening gambit, which can only end in a checkmate that annihilates the possibility of a rematch.
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Review:
A man is found shot in his garden, in a village not far from Vienna. Unable to be defined as either a suicide or a homicide, the death is called one of "mysterious circumstances." The garden--unlike the prominent citizen's life--is highly unusual, a "concentric maze of ten-foot-high hedges leading to a chessboard-shaped clearing paved with squares of white and black marble." Frisch, the murdered man, was obsessed with chess, and the novel's chilling first sentence--"They say that chess was born in bloodshed"--bears this out.
About the Author:
In this first novel, Paolo Maurensig coolly executes the ultimate drama of manipulation--life as a game of chess. On this armature, he hangs a tale of vengeance set against a backdrop of historic villainy, Nazi against Jew. The two chess players are as black and white as can be--a persecuted Jew and a ruthless, persecuting German who first "duel" over a chessboard in an international tournament, and then in a concentration camp. The narrative is a meticulous reconstruction of the moments and background events that led to Frisch's death. Ingeniously referring everything back to the machinations and executions of movements in a chess game, life itself is at stake as the inescapable sins of the past catch up with the chess-obsessed characters.
Paolo Maurensig was born in Italy in 1943. He has held a variety of occupations, most recently a restorer of antique musical instruments.
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- PublisherHenry Holt
- Publication date1998
- ISBN 10 0752817582
- ISBN 13 9780752817583
- BindingPaperback
- Rating
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The Luneburg Variation
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Thomson Reuters Australia, Limited
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0752817582
ISBN 13: 9780752817583
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The Luneburg Variation
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(1998)
ISBN 10: 0752817582
ISBN 13: 9780752817583
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Fair. A readable copy of the book which may include some defects such as highlighting and notes. Cover and pages may be creased and show discolouration. Seller Inventory # GOR012712019
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The Luneburg Variation
Published by
Henry Holt
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0752817582
ISBN 13: 9780752817583
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Paperback
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR003661141
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The Luneburg Variation
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(1998)
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Book Description Paperback. Condition: Good. This novel tells the story of a duel to the death, of a chess game that remained unfinished for over 50 years. When a German businessman is found shot dead, a mystery unfolds which carries the reader back to the man's rivalry with a brilliant Jewish chess player, and to the secret in their past. The book has been read but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact and the cover is intact. Some minor wear to the spine. Seller Inventory # GOR003976658
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The Luneburg Variation (1998 publication)
Published by
Henry Holt
(1998)
ISBN 10: 0752817582
ISBN 13: 9780752817583
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Softcover
Quantity: 1
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Book Description Condition: Good. Buy with confidence! Book is in good condition with minor wear to the pages, binding, and minor marks within. Seller Inventory # bk0752817582xvz189zvxgdd
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